Thursday, February 7, 2008

Finally. As I continue to sort through an avalanche of astonishing recipes from fine cooks around the globe, it was time I put some beans where my own mouth is with a softly flavored dish, easy to prepare and equally glorious when chilled. Thank you to all who have already shared their kitchen creations for My Legume Love Affair. To those who are considering joining in, the blurry deadline is February 9, with the round-up to be posted the week of February 10. Do stop back. I promise that there will be scores of dazzling savory dishes and sweet treats to suit everyone's fancy. We are a collection of food aficionados who definitely know Jack about our beans.

Prepare the broth.In a medium saucepan, bring the vegetable stock, ginger, brown sugar, bay leaves, cinnamon stick and thyme to a boil.Reduce heat and simmer for 20 minutes or until the stock reduces by almost half.

Meantime, in a large skillet, gently heat the olive oil, then sauté the cubed fennel until browned on all sides.Add the garlic and allow it to heat just until fragrant. If using dried rosemary, add it with the garlic. Remove from heat.Strain the spice solids from the stock, then pour the stock into the skillet with the fennel and garlic.If using fresh rosemary, add it now and bring mixture to a simmer.Add the green olives and lemon juice, then carefully add the cannellini beans, folding them in the stock until well mixed.Simmer gently until just heated through. Do not allow it to dry out and stick to the skillet.Remove from heat, top with the parsley, then salt and pepper to taste. Serves 4.–

All the pretty pebbles lapping in the luxuryof a gently spiced and herbal broth.

Hi Susan, i dont know how you did but these photos are soooo beautiful!! you are such and artist!! specially the fennel..i could smell from here its perfume!! thanks for the recipe too i'll definitely try this, this summer!! :-)

Told ya!! Indians can make millions of dishes with beans, thanks God there are only few hundreds of us in blogosphere!!;DEnjoy and I can't wait to see the round up, will have to save the whole post!Great simple but fragrant dish Susan.I have come to LOVE Fennel bulbs, love the aroma of sauteed Fennel!:)Have a great weekend.

Dear All - Thanks for your kind comments. I will be responding to each of them (as well as reading your latest posts) as soon as I complete the bulk of work for My Legume Love Affair round-up, coming next week.

Susan, lovie ~ What a substantial dish. I love the playfulness of the ingredients: fennel, cinnamon, olives...And cannellini beans as the sponge, absorbing those great flavors. Truthfully, I've never cooked with cannellini beans and only think of them as a stand-by if for some reason I cannot get my hands on chickpeas to make hummus. Not that that has ever happened, but I'm just sayin'...I know, however, it is common in Italy to pair fennel with cannellini (not sure if it is also common to pair them with cinnamon or not), so I enjoy this elaboration of cucina povere.

Kevin – Fennel is not quite as popular as I would like, not in the U.S., anyway. I wonder if it has to do with it being misnamed as anise. These flavors really do play off each other.--Hi, Coco. Your tuna salad sounds divine.--Thanks, Suganya. And you can thank IKEA for those wood tones. ; )--Johanna – Yes, cats…they *will* demand attention. Willem and I were just talking about his “neediness” the other day. Of course, he won the argument.--Thanks, Wendy. I'm learning more and more why folks love fennel.--Hi, Helen. I was intrigued by the combo, too. --Dhanngit – Thank you, sweet girl. I’m pretty fond of the fennel photo, too.--Asha – Thank you! You certainly did tell me so. ; ) I’m delighted so many Indian cooks contributed to the event. As you know, Indian food is one of my favorites.--Hi, Sugari. Yummmmmmmmmm…you took the word right out of my mouth. Thanks!--Thank you, dear Nanditha.--Hi, Vaishali. Thank you.--Thanks, Ann. The round-up is quite “The Long and Winding Road.”--Welcome, Astra! Thanks for your kind words. Good to see you.--Hey, Ricki! How about green pepper or chopped tomato?--Thanks, Uma. Good to see you.--Thanks, Sra. Fennel’s crunchy like celery, but milder and sweeter without astringency.--Hi, Simona. I adore white beans. Would for a good local Italian grocer; I really wanted to use dried cannellini. Glad you like the photos. Thanks!--Welcome, Shriya. Thank you very much for your kind thoughts.--Hi, Meg! Thanks. Glad you enjoyed the photos, although I am sure you’ve seen those scenes before.--Thanks, Lisa. I’m an olive fan, too. They really pack a lot of flavor in a tiny package. I’m going to try my best to make your soup deadline. --Cynthia – Thanks! --Hi, Katie. I was intrigued, too. Hope you try it at some point.--Thanks, Tanna. Canned beans get a bad rap sometimes, but they worked just fine here. Good to see you.--Hi, Nora. As you now know, the round-up was a huge success. Thanks for helping make that happen.--Obrigado, Sylvia. Fennel is not so sweet as, say, fruit. You might like to try it again.--Thank you, Nuria! --Thank you, Mona. Good to see you!--Thanks, Emiline. The dish was pretty tame until the olives jumped in.--Thanks, Bee. Good to see you.--Thank you, dear Dhanggit. : D--TBC – Thanks. If you are ever interested, fennel is usually found (if stocked at all) near the cabbage and other big greens at a typical supermarket.--Shaun – Cinnamon, to my knowledge, isn’t a natural pairing, but white beans are so mildly flavored that they are virtually a "tabula rasa." This was a nicely nuanced dish, but it definitely needed the salty jolt of olives.

Chickpeas are my go-to bean, too. I always have a couple of big-bruiser cans in the cupboard; they are as much a staple in this kitchen as canned tomatoes.--Thanks, Lisa!--Hi, Susan. Thanks. That fennel is starting to develop a fan club. ; )--Thanks, Lucy. Fennel sure knows how to throw her curves around; she’s quite perfectly sculpted. And now I know what all the fuss is about this marvelously textured and flavored vegetable. This is my first kitchen foray and it won’t be my last.

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